Chapter 55

"You saw it?"

Lin Wanjun nodded, holding the letter in her hand, somewhat at a loss. She lowered her eyes and remained silent, seemingly unsure of what to say.

Song Chaoyun sat in front of the bronze mirror. The lady-in-waiting, holding fresh flowers in her hand, compared them to her hair bun. After looking at her face in the mirror, she asked, "What does Your Highness think?"

The woman combing her hair held a pearl plum in her hand. Although it has plum blossoms, it does not grow in winter. Instead, it is a seasonal flower that only appears in early summer. The pearl plum's flower spikes are like strings of snow-white pearls adorning the branches. They are not yet fully open, and are all round buds. They are small and delicate, and are very elegant and exquisite when pinned to a hair bun.

Upon hearing this, the woman glanced at herself in the mirror, then looked up and her gaze shifted to Lin Wanjun kneeling behind her. "This flower is a gift for Madam Lin. Go and put it on her."

At present, the most popular flowers in Kyoto are used when sisters become sworn sisters, symbolizing pure and clean friendship. The deeper meaning of giving them to Lin Wanjun is self-evident: she wants Lin Wanjun to make a decision: whether to lay everything out with Qingyun or to sever ties.

Water flowed out of the ladle, followed by beads of sweat the size of soybeans falling to the ground. Qingyun was quite hot; her nose and forehead were covered in sweat, and even her snow-white chest was drenched in sweat inside her clothes. She was carrying a bucket in one hand and a wooden ladle in the other, paying no attention to these things. Just as her feet had flattened the dry grass, she heard a commotion coming from afar. The person was shouting that something terrible had happened. When the person ran over, they realized that it was related to them.

"Miss...you...you're on good terms with a maid named Yinglian in the Commander's mansion kitchen, aren't you?" The madam gasped for breath, blurting out everything in one breath. Before Qingyun could answer, she caught her breath and continued, "She...she's fighting with someone! You'd better go and see, or you'll get hurt!"

Upon hearing this, Qingyun tossed aside the wooden ladle and, before leaving, made sure the maids and mothers there poured water on it promptly. Only then did he hurriedly leave the manor and head towards the commander's residence.

Let's rewind to when Yinglian and Nashu's mother were arguing.

Because a pot of osmanthus vinegar had run out in the kitchen, this stuff was in high demand. It was bought from the largest and most expensive restaurant in the capital, costing a hundred taels of silver per pot. It was only available for a limited time and ordinary wealthy families couldn't buy it. Only those who were related to the royal family could obtain it. When Mama Shu went to ask for it, it was already gone. This matter might not have been done by Yinglian. Among all the maids and servants in the house, only she was of low status and had no connections. She was not valued by her superiors. Mama Shu couldn't find anyone else, so she took Yinglian as her scapegoat.

"I'm telling you now! If you took it, hand it over! If you go to the authorities, you'll be in big trouble!" With that, Madam Shu grabbed Yinglian by the hair and dragged her outside. She was a burly woman, broad-shouldered, and did manual labor; she had a strong grip.

Although Yinglian was also a maid, she was a first-class maid who served her master closely. She had never suffered much hardship since childhood and was skilled in flower arranging and poetry recitation. As a concubine in the Qin family, she was pampered and could not really resist much. She could only let the other party do as she pleased. Many people around came to persuade her, but they were all waved aside by Mama Shu. Here, she was someone who could speak up. Hearing her like this, some of the maids around did not dare to step forward. She carried Yinglian to the center of the courtyard and suddenly threw her to the ground.

Although the road was paved with stone bricks, the surface was incredibly rough. Countless people had passed by, leaving it covered in pebbles and sand. Yinglian was caught off guard by the sudden throw and had no time to block. Her face made solid contact with the ground, and instantly, the burning heat and pain from the friction assaulted her senses.

Her face was slashed in several places, and blood was seeping from the wounds. It looked quite frightening. When she looked up, everyone around her was startled. This woman's facial injury was no small matter.

"Ouch!" An elderly woman who couldn't bear to watch any longer quickly helped Yinglian up. Seeing this, Aunt Shu suddenly stepped forward and pushed her away, shouting, "No one is allowed to help! You vixen!" As she spoke, her blood boiled, and she glanced left and right, noticing the bucket of water that hadn't been used to water the tree that morning under the tree roots. Aunt Shu, with her plump body, bent down and picked up the bucket, and without saying a word, she was about to pour the water on Yinglian.

The old woman who had been pushed away sat up from the ground and quickly gestured for the people around her to stop her, saying, "Are you all dead?! Do you all want to be punished?!"

The old woman was no less experienced than Aunt Shu. As soon as she spoke, the previously timid people rushed forward to take Aunt Shu's hand, and the others also snatched the water bucket from her hands.

"Aunt Shu, what do you want by bullying a kitchen maid time and time again! You say she took it, so she took it? Where's the evidence?!" The old woman asked loudly, hands on her hips.

Since Yinglian arrived in the kitchen, everyone thought she was honest and easy to bully, so they assigned her all the dirty and hard work. She was always the first to get up and the last to go to bed. Someone had to stay in the kitchen late at night to prepare hot water in case the master called. Some people wanted some peace and quiet in the middle of the night, so they always asked Yinglian to do the work. She never complained; in fact, she often took the initiative to find work. She was honest, sensible, obedient, and filial to her elders. Was she really just meant to be bullied?!

"Don't think we're all blind and disgusted by her! It's just that you wanted to eat 'Su Nai Hua' the other day, and she didn't let you have it! And that milk that was boiled and stored in rations—the commander absolutely had to have some when he came back, but your Aunt Shu, being so arrogant and demanding, insisted she only tasted it and that was it!" The old woman pointed at Aunt Shu's flushed face.

"Who would drink a whole bowl of that? Not to mention everyone in the kitchen, Ying is a kind-hearted girl. She just said you drank too much, and you hold a grudge against her, throwing all sorts of accusations at her! Where does she put her face?!"

"I'm not afraid of you flattering me. You're half-buried in the ground, and you think that now that your old man is under Lord Liu's patronage, with high office and support, and riches to enjoy, you've forgotten your roots and are chasing after profit, disregarding your reputation, and bullying a weak kitchen maid!" Before the other party could refute, she launched into another tirade, determined to fight her to the death.

Madam Shu's chest heaved violently, her face flushed a deep purplish-red, her hands clenched, her eyes fixed on the old woman, her teeth clenched in a furious, almost demonic, manner. However, she couldn't refute any of this, because what the woman said was the truth. After a long pause, once the woman had finished speaking, Madam Shu finally chuckled and spread her hands, saying...

"What are you pretending for? If you really wanted to help others, you wouldn't have done it now. You're just playing the good guy! Do you think you're Bao Zheng just because you have a crescent moon mark on your forehead? Don't you know that a crescent moon mark on your forehead doesn't necessarily mean you're Bao Zheng? It could just be Erlang Shen's celestial dog. You're trying to imitate your master but you're just making a fool of yourself!"

"What business is it of yours whether someone pretends to be a good person or not?" A woman's voice came as she spoke. The woman was dressed in coarse linen clothes, her body was dirty, and the mud on her cuffs had not been wiped off. She also smelled of sweat. However, she was not weak. She glared at Madam Shu and the people around her, which made everyone tremble. Her aura was so intimidating that no one dared to utter a word in rebuttal.

Following behind Qingyun was Song Chaoli. Seeing her being pulled up by Qingyun, she tried to wink at him. Yinglian glanced at her, gave her a reassuring look, and then turned to thank Qingyun. Having followed her young lady since childhood, she knew this would definitely anger her. Her young lady was very protective of her children, so she quickly grabbed her hand to prevent her from suddenly lashing out, as it would be too late to stop her then.

"Who are you?" Mrs. Shu asked sharply, though her tone was somewhat weak.

Qingyun just scoffed when she heard this. She had already learned what had happened on the way here, and she figured this person was just looking for trouble. Yinglian had been having a hard time without telling her, and had been bullied by these people for no reason. "You say she stole vinegar? Fine, which eye of yours saw it?"

She looked around and said, "If she stole it, where is the stolen goods now, and where is the money from selling them? This thing is rare and not something ordinary people can afford. In the wealthy households of Muyun City, which family has this? I suppose they wouldn't dare to keep stolen goods. If you want to ask, surely you can find out?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Qingyun stepped forward, bent down to examine him, and asked word by word, "Have you verified these things? If you can't answer without evidence, it means you have a guilty conscience and are eager to frame someone else."

Before Madam Shu could speak, Song Chaoli, who was standing behind her, hurriedly spoke up. Her face was a little unnatural. She glanced at Yinglian and then quickly turned back, "Since that's the case, why don't we search both of them and search the courtyard?"

Yinglian remained calm, her earlier submissive demeanor completely gone. The seasoned Madam Shu, seeing this, was momentarily at a loss. But if she refused to search the house, the accusation would be confirmed.

The elderly woman standing beside her chimed in, "If you're going to search, then search everything, so it won't be accused of favoritism and a lack of fairness."

Song Chaoli: "I'll make the decision."

Although Song Chaoli's identity was not explicitly stated, the servants all knew that she was a member of the imperial family and could not be neglected. Even if everyone was unwilling, they could not do it at that moment.

The group of people, armed with their tools, began searching the house. The maid, who had been bitten by a snake a few days earlier and was lying in bed, was stunned by the sight and thought that Yinglian had successfully reported her and had come to arrest her.

As expected, the missing rose vinegar was found in Aunt Shu's room. The evidence was irrefutable, leaving her no room for denial.

Upon seeing this, Shu's mother's legs went weak and she collapsed to the ground. However, no one around came forward to help her up. Her former followers now pretended not to see her in trouble.

This time she genuinely didn't steal anything, but the vinegar was found during a search of her room. She had no way to deny it. Recalling the exchange of glances between Yinglian and Song Chaoli, her earlier worries had come true; that brat had orchestrated this whole thing to set her up.

Madam Shu was shocked and immediately cried out that she was innocent, "She framed me! It was all her scheme! Your Honor!" As she spoke, she tried to grab Song Chaoli's leg, "You can't abandon me for a little girl! This was all done at your behest!"

"You can't just stand by and watch me die! My lord! My lord! I've served you like a dog, you can't just leave me to die! This wretched woman is an eyesore, you said you wanted to get rid of her as soon as possible, how can you abandon me so quickly!"

Upon seeing this, Song Chaoli kicked the person away in disgust. The other person's words made it sound as if she was teaching others to bully Yinglian, which made her feel extremely disgusted.

As they say, experience is the best teacher. She saw through the scheme and even tried to sow discord between the two. But the more she talked, the more wicked Song Chaoli became.

"How dare you falsely accuse me!" She summoned the guards, her face full of anger. "This person is of questionable character and speaks wickedly. Pull out her tongue! Cut off her limbs!" Song Chaoli's expression was cold, revealing a royal arrogance and ruthlessness. She looked down at Madam Shu and slowly announced her death sentence, "Make her into a human pig. Before she dies, keep her in a vat and display her here every day."

Having said that, he turned and left.

The crowd was horrified, speechless for a moment. Many were so frightened that they could hardly stand. A dampness slowly seeped out from between the legs where Madam Shu was sitting, accompanied by the smell of urine and feces. She stared in astonishment in the direction Song Chaoli had left, whimpering a few times, unable to even beg for mercy. The people standing behind her unconsciously stepped back.

Even Qingyun, who had seen many big scenes, couldn't help but frown. Although she could tell that Yinglian and the other party had set a trap, she didn't expect the other party to be so ruthless. In an instant, she got goosebumps all over her body and realized more deeply that human life was cheap in this world. But she was not a saint and would not sympathize too much. Blame it on that mouth that caused the trouble.